Former Director Of US Patent And Trademark Office Weighs In On BlackBerry-Typo Lawsuit

At CES 2014, Typo showed off their new and upcoming iPhone accessory which was basically a keyboard attachment, ultimately transforming an iPhone into the device pictured above. Right off the bat we’re sure many of you guys can see some of the similarities that the case has with BlackBerry devices, like the Q10, for example, and naturally BlackBerry did not take too kindly to it and have since filed a lawsuit against the company, in which Typo responded that they would defend it vigorously.

Like we said the similarities in design is pretty obvious upon first glance, but it turns out that BlackBerry trying to prove that to be the case could be pretty tricky, as highlighted by the former director of the US Patent and Trademark Office, who in an interview with Business in Canada highlighted some areas in which BlackBerry would have to prove was indeed that of their design. An example given was how the design of the individual keys themselves mattered, such as any indentations, grooves, or raised surfaces would have to be proven.

The way the keys have been designed would also be an arguable point, with the director, Mr. Q. Todd Dickinson, stating that, “Whatever BlackBerry is currently selling doesn’t make a difference […] The whole issue will be whether what the defendant’s product is versus the wording of these claims.” BlackBerry will be represented by Quinn, Emanuel, Urquhart, and Sullivan, whom Dickinson states is a powerful law firm who will not be fooling around. To see the rest of Dickinson’s comments and views on the matter, hit up Business in Canada’s website for the details.